Agios: definition, calculation and amount

Agios are bank charges taken when an account is uncovered. Calculated according to the amount of the overdraft, its duration and the overall effective annual rate, they can generate many additional costs for the holder of the bank account. Find out how these debtor interests work, in which cases they apply and above all, how to avoid them.

Capital video: Agios: definition, calculation and amount

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What are banking agios?

Agios: definition

Agios, also called debtor interests, represent all the costs collected by a bank when a account has a negative balance (discovered).

Composition of agios (debtor interests and intervention commissions)

They consist mainly:

• Interests calculated on the amount and duration of the overdraft
• Intervention commissions (forcing costs) linked to the management of the account in an overdraft

The amount of intervention commissions is supervised by law:

• 8 euros per operation, and 80 euros per month at most,
• 4 euros per operation, 20 euros per month, and 200 euros per year maximum, in the event of subscription to the specific offer (an offer dedicated to fragile customers)
• 25 euros per month for customers detected as fragile by their bank, but who have not opted for the specific offer

All of these costs represent the bank’s remuneration for the temporary “loan” that it grants to its customer when the latter exceeds the balance available on his account. The amount of agios varies depending on whether the overdraft is authorized or not, and depending on the tariff conditions specific to each banking establishment.

What happens in the event of a bank overdraft?

In the event of a banking overdraft, two situations are possible.

The overdraft is authorized

The account presents a negative balance, but the customer obtained an overdraft authorization from his bank. In this case, the banking establishment will validate the operation (pay the check or the deduction) and will then take agios from the conditions agreed with the account holder of the account.

The overdraft is not allowed

The account presents a negative balance, but the customer does not have an overdraft authorization where it is exceeded. The bank can either reject the operation (refuse to pay the bank check or the deduction due to the absence of a provision) or exceptionally accept to pay. In the latter case, it will impose penalties, payment incident fees and agios calculated on the basis of an unauthorized overdraft. If the overdraft is accepted, agios will be calculated at a rate increased compared to that applicable to the authorized overdraft.

The overdraft exceeds three months

A bank account cannot legally operate permanently uncovered. Beyond three consecutive months of overdraft, the bank is required to make a consumer credit offer to the account holder. In the event of refusal of his implementation, he must immediately reimburse the total amount of the overdraft noted on his account.

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How much can you go beyond your authorized overdraft?

There is no rule and it all depends on the bank. Depending on the case, it may allow her client to continue using his account even if the authorized overdraft ceiling is exceeded. But this is not an acquired right. The bank can at any time revoke the authorization to overdraft granted and require the reimbursement of the overdraft.

In the absence of a reimbursement within the period granted by the bank, the Customer is exposed to the risk of being saved to the FICP file (file of the reimbursement of credits to individuals), which impacts in the future its ability to obtain credits .

When are agios trigger?

As soon as the balance of an account is debtor

The agios are triggered in theory as soon as the account has a debtor balance (when the amounts debited are greater than those credited). Some banks are a little more flexible and tolerate a few euros of exceeding or apply a grace period of several days allowing the customer to regularize his situation before applying agios. The latter are invoiced quarterly and calculated according to the number of debtor days observed in the past quarter.

AGIOS FLAFATIARYS

Some banks charge a minimum of agios fixed lump sum (generally at seven euros), even if their real amount resulting from the calculation is lower. Banks justify this practice due to the management costs of overdrafts.

How are agios calculated?

Agios proportional to the overall effective annual rate (TAEG)

Agios are calculated according to the amount of the overdraft and the duration during which the account presents a debtor balance. They are proportional to the amount of the overdraft, to its duration in days as well as at the overall effective annual rate (TAEG) provided for in the account opening agreement. It is expressed as an annual percentage of the total amount of the credit. The Agios calculation method is as follows:

Discovery amount x The number of days x the rate / 365

The interest rate cannot be higher than the wear rate

The interest rate applied cannot be higher than the wear rate which is set quarterly by the Banque de France. It is generally between 15 and 19 %.

Can we be reimbursed for agios?

Negotiate with his banking advisor

The agios correspond to the remuneration of the bank. They are therefore justified. Nevertheless, according to the operation of the account, the contract established with the bank, the seniority of the commercial relationship, it is possible to request reimbursement with its advisor or by mail addressed to the management of the agency. Especially when the overdraft is accidental and exceptional; For example if the customer has failed to turn funds from his savings account on his current account before issuing a check in an unusual amount.

Request for cancellation of costs

In addition, the account holder may request the cancellation of costs and agios following this overdraft, if he has not been made aware of the debtor situation of his account. Indeed, the bank is subject to an obligation to notify its client 14 days before a direct debit when its account has a lack of provision. The cancellation request must be sent to the bank by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt.

How to not pay the agios?

Regularize the situation as quickly as possible

The first advice in the face of an overdraft is to regularize its situation as quickly as possible, which will limit the amount of costs and agios. Upstream of a large expenditure, preventing your advisor can make it possible to obtain his prior agreement on the reimbursement of agios. The bank will have more chance of showing leniency with regard to the customer in the event of a very occasional overdraft rather than the examination of his account brought out multiple discoveries.

Anticipate the samples

To avoid agios, it is necessary to ensure that the withdrawals taken from your account are right after the date on which income (salary, retirement, rent, etc.) are fired. It is also better to prefer payments in real time rather than delayed to avoid excessive and unexpected direct debits. Immediate debit cards, such as the nickel card can be a good option. Indeed, with immediate debit with systematic authorization, they prevent spending more than the sum held on the account.